Odisha should rationalise duty on steel industries: Jindal

Jindal Steel and Power Ltd (JSPL) chairman Naveen Jindal on Monday urged the Odisha government to rationalise duty on steel-making industries which are passing through a bad phase and incurring losses in the state.

“Both the central government and state government should take steps for sustenance of steel industries in the state and across the country. If the governments don’t provide appropriate supports, plants would be shut down and lakhs of people would lose jobs and livelihoods,” said Jindal after meeting state Chief Secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi.

Noting thousands of crores have been invested in Odisha, he said many steel companies are facing losses in the state, including JSPL’s Angul plant.

He expressed apprehensions that once steel plants are shut down, it would be difficult for them to resume and this will result in loss of jobs for lakhs of people.

He urged the state government to follow the rules of Indian Bureau of Mines to impose duty and royalty on iron ore.

“The state government is imposing same duty on low grade fines and high grade lumps, which is very unfair and this must change. The government must follow the rules of IBM and charge duty accordingly,” he said.

He also expressed inability to contribute to the water conservation fund (WCF) created by the state government.

The government has decided that the industries using more than or equal to 5 cusec of water will have to make one time contribution of Rs.2.5 crore per cusec of water additional to be allocated to them.

According to an estimation made by the water resources department, the government could generate about Rs.1,000 crore under the WCF as about 100 industries require water more than five cusec of water every year.

Welcoming the Odisha government for going to auction one iron ore mines, Jindal said the industries invested heavily in the state should be given priority in getting mines through auction.

“Companies having end use plants with investment over Rs.1,000 crore in Odisha should get priority in the auction process. This will benefit Odisha in creating more employment and bringing socio-economic development for people. This should be done speedily,” he added.

He also said his company would participate in bidding whenever the time is required.

With various companies from China, Japan and Korea are dumping steel in India in cheap price, he said the Indian government should impose a minimum import price on these products for the sustenance of the industries in the country.

On Angul project, Jindal said that the first phase of the plant is complete and fully operational.

“By end of 2016, the plant will achieve 3.5 MTPA capacity and by March 2018 the plant will achieve 6 MTPA capacity,” he added. (IANS)